Water systems with 5,000 or more hook-ups would be required to find out costs to bring fluoride levels to approved levels under a bill that won final House approval Sunday and was sent to Gov. Bobby Jindal.

A compromise version of the measure, Senate Bill 312, won House approval 78-19. It cleared the Senate on Friday 34-0.

Fluoride is a chemical com-pound found naturally in ground water that helps fight tooth decay.

State Rep. Kay Katz, R-Monroe and House handler of the bill, said the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta has called fluoride a Top 10 health achievement.

Any funds needed to add the fluoride, Katz said, would be an issue tackled by lawmakers in the future.

State Rep. Sam Jones, D-Franklin, criticized the bill. Jones said the bill imposes an unfunded mandate on local governments and said excessive levels of fluoride can be deadly.

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